As mentioned, we just got back.
This was a family vacation with diving and was not intended to be a strictly diving vacation. We chose to stay in San Jose del Cabo based on a great deal that was offered at the Hyatt Ziva all inclusive resort. Very nice accomodations, great food, etc.
We booked with East Cape Explorers as they were the only operator in San Jose del Cabo. I had initially booked three days of two-tank dives for my daughter (Jr Rescue diver) and myself, as well as a fourth day for myself on their regularly scheduled Wednesday trip to Gordo Banks. On our first day there, they recommended cancelling the Gordo Banks dive as they had not seen anything significant at the site for some time. Apparently the water was so warm that the large pelagics there had moved off in search of colder water. As such, I ended up just doing the three days with my daughter.
They also offer trips to Cabo Pulmo
For the first two days of diving, the boat contained my daughter and I with our guide as well as an open water student and his instructor. My daughter and I did our dive with our guide, and the student and his instructor did their thing. On the third day, my daughter and I were the only ones on the boat with our guide. Getting a private outing is one of the perks of going during the slow season!
Water temps were around 86F, so very warm. On the first two days of diving, there was a thermocline at around 55ft, below which the temp dropped into the mid 70s. On our third day of diving, we got to 70ft with no noticeable thermocline.
All sites had considerable surge which is easy to deal with, and some had a significant current as well.
Very similar sea life was seen on all dives: Cortez angelfish, king angelfish, Moorish idols, Mexican hogfish, yellowtail surgeonfish, butterflyfish, barberfish, guineafowl pufferfish, boxfish, Cortez rainbow wrasses, lots of parrotfish, various morays, etc. On our first dive, we had the pleasure of watching a couple of mobula rays gliding by during our safety stop.
The diving with East Cape Explorers includes photos. Bring along a thumbdrive each day, and they will copy the day's photos to it for you. They do not have a red filter, however, so I do have a fair bit of post-production work to bring some white-balance to the photos.
One downside is that they are not able to offer hotel pickup due to what they call "local regulations" and the taxis. Taxi from the hotel zone to the dive shop at the marina in La Playita was $15. The La Playita taxis charged $20 for the return. I was able to get the phone number for one of the hotel zone taxis and with 10 minutes notice, they came and picked me up for the $15 fare back to the hotel. It is about a 10 minute ride from the hotel zone to the shop.
We did go into Cabo San Lucas for an afternoon. Although they have more options for dive operators, we really did not like Cabo San Lucas nearly as much as we enjoyed San Jose del Cabo. I would definitely stay in San Jose again and would recommend East Cape Explorers for anyone staying in San Jose del Cabo.
If a friend does not go with me I will be diving alone.
